I Can't Hear You
by chocolate covered hot chilies
Summary: Sequel-Picking up a few years down the road from I Can See You Talking, we find things not as pink and pretty as one would have hoped. As life goes on, things change, and one of them is stuck trying to find where she fits in all over again.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: _Not mine. Never were, never will be. If they were, Owen would fall on a spear and then tumble down the stairs and then get hit by a bus that explodes in a painful and fiery death. The end. Vultures would be involved as well and maybe snakes too.__

_A/N: Welcome to World Autism Awareness Day! Remember to wear blue in support of everybody. I like that, wear blue in support of **everybody**! Here's the next installment in the I Can See You Talking series. I hope you enjoyed the last story and although this one is a bumpy ride, that you'll stick around until the end._

_Beta'd by Sara_

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><p>"I can see you talking. You two realize that I'm not blind over here, right?" Silence in her house meant they were up to something and lately that was not a good thing. Her patience was running thin as it was and out of the corner of her eye, she could see the two of them signing and conspiring, which only annoyed her.<p>

"What? We're just practicing." Arizona smiled innocently at her girlfriend as Sofia continued to sign at her mama, ignoring Callie's protests.

"Practicing my ass," Callie scoffed. All three of them verbally spoke when practicing. It helped in correcting each other if everybody knew what was being said, but Sofia and Arizona weren't using their voices. They were trying to talk behind her back right in front of her face. "Sofia, what were you and Mama talking about?"

"I'm not supposed to tell you." Their seven and a half year old daughter crossed her arms in defiance. She was a good kid and often did what was asked of her without question, but she also liked the special attention she got when one parent or the other would sign with her. It was special time, even if she was keeping secrets from her mommy.

"Why not? It's not nice to keep secrets." Callie dropped the annoyed tone of her voice to coax the information out of her daughter.

"'Cause you'll get mad at Mama and yell more and cry again." Which had been the story of Sofia's life for weeks now. Her moms fought all the time and all her mommy did was cry. She didn't understand what was happening, but she knew nobody was happy.

"Really, Arizona? I told you _no,_so what, you're going behind my back to convince our daughter to change my mind?" Annoyance quickly gave way to anger. Callie had lots of anger and it was always directed at Arizona these days.

Arizona sighed and left her daughter's side for her girlfriend's. She was hoping to stop the fight before it began, at least while Sofia was present. "That's not what this is about, Calliope. Sofia asked why you're always sad anymore and without wanting to upset you again, I was trying to explain that sometimes we have hard times and we should be extra nice to you for a while."

Callie didn't believe it for one second. She wasn't dumb and she wasn't fragile and she hated that Arizona was treating her that way _and_telling their daughter that she had to do the same. "Don't you have a support group to go and run?"

Ignoring the jealous tone of her partner's voice, mostly because she didn't understand where it was coming from, Arizona smiled, rubbing Callie's arms from behind. "You could come, you know? We're planning for the summer camps."

"I don't have time, Arizona."

"Yes you do. You haven't been in months. Maybe it'll do you some good to get out and around people outside of work." No matter what Arizona did, she couldn't get Callie out of the house for more than a few hours each week and that was for the grocery store. She was closing herself off and nobody had any idea why and their constant arguing over the other subject at hand just made things worse.

"Right and all the way over there you can badger me instead of respecting my answer? I think I'll pass." Arizona knew a fight was imminent at this point by the physical stance Callie was taking. It was her fault, too, and Arizona knew it, but she hated when they fought in front of Sofia.

"I'd respect your answer if you would explain it to me. Stop shutting down on me, Calliope." Arizona's voice wavered between begging and accusatory, but she couldn't help it.

"Like you're one to talk." It was a low blow, but even nine years later, it's how they fought.

"That's not fair, Calliope. The past has no place in our fights. _Your rules._"

"But it has everything to do with this," Callie mumbled low enough for her partner not to hear what she said.

"What?" Arizona was quickly losing her temper. It was enough to have one child grumbling under her breath. She didn't need two.

"Just take Sofia and go have fun." Callie watched out of the corner of her eye as Sofia started obsessively straightening up their ridiculously clean living room. She knew it was unfair to argue in front of their daughter; it caused meltdowns because Sofia lost control of the situation and Callie couldn't do that to her again.

"Come with us, Callie. Please." Arizona watched concern replace the anger on Callie's face and realized Sofia's habit of defusing the situation unintentionally had happened again.

"Not tonight, Arizona." Callie turned completely around now and kissed the blonde's cheek before returning her attention to the dishes in front of her.

"Sofia, baby, go get your shoes on." Arizona dismissed their daughter for one last plea with her girlfriend. When she was sure that Sofia was out of sight, she turned Callie around. "Callie, I didn't mean to upset you. I just don't understand. Help me understand. I thought you wanted this."

She sighed and when Arizona pulled her by the hips into an embrace. She melted into the touch. "I did. I just changed my mind." She blinked back the tears from falling into the curve of Arizona's neck.

"Tell me why." They were whispering now, holding tightly to each other.

"We don't have the time as it is. And with your schedule and your support groups and advocacy campaign— dreams just change."

Pulling back from Callie's tight hug, Arizona looked in her glassy eyes. "Not this, Calliope. You're lying to me."

"Go be Super Mom." Callie leaned in for a chaste kiss. "I'll wait up for you tonight."

After wiping the stray tear that managed to escape Callie's thick walls, Arizona's thumb continued to caress her cheek. "Can we talk when I get home? Please?" She was staring deep into the sad brown eyes in front of her, wanting more than anything to take away the pain she didn't understand.

"I'm not going to change my mind."

"Just talk to me. That's all I'm asking." Arizona knew she was asking for so much more, but at this point, she'd take anything her girlfriend was willing to offer.

"We'll talk." She didn't want to talk; she didn't know how to explain things and she was afraid she'd lose everything if she was forced. Callie had watched families fall apart for less.

"Promise?" Arizona didn't believe her but she had every right to doubt Callie. Too many times over the past few months, Callie had said they'd talk but something always came up.

"Promise." They'd talk; they had to talk and she knew it.

Leaning back in until their lips rested against each other, the comforting gesture as intimate as they'd been lately, Arizona broke her rules of giving Callie the space she needed to figure things out and captured her mouth in a passionate kiss. Her stomach fluttered and her heart soared because Callie reciprocated. She was so confused and half the time didn't even know if Callie still loved her, but she could feel it in the kiss. She hoped beyond hope that was what she was feeling. "I love you."

"I love you." Callie leaned her forehead against the blonde curls cascading across Arizona's face. Things sucked and they were only getting worse, but for thirty seconds, in Arizona's arms, she could forget and just be. They could just be.

It was at that moment that Callie and Arizona heard the screaming and knew it couldn't be ignored. Following her girlfriend's lead, Callie, who was the second to reach the cries, stood in the doorway and watched. They switched off who took each break down by who got there first because only one parent was needed to work through the problem. Most times, two just got in the way and made things worse. Today's problem was about shoes. None of the shoes had been touched by either mom, but something still upset their daughter, sending her into one of her many anxiety attacks anyway. It broke Callie's heart watching her daughter sobbing hysterically in her mama's arms. The older Sofia got, the more things caused these moments. She didn't understand what was going on with her but truth be told, neither did her mothers. They just did what they could to make it better. They had the patience of Mother Teresa and it seemed a blessing since things were never truly looking up.

Arizona changed Sofia's outfit to match her chosen shoes for Wednesdays while Callie bit back her tears. It was unfair to both of them, Arizona and Sofia, the emotions she was feeling, and she refused to let them see it.

"All better, baby girl." Arizona kissed her daughter's nose and squeezed tight when Sofia's arms wrapped around her neck. "Ready to take off?" She knew keeping on schedule after a meltdown was essential for Sofia and although she could see something was seriously upsetting her partner, it would have to wait.

"Will Emmy and Tye be there tonight, Mama?" Sofia was once again in a calm state of mind as if the past ten minutes hadn't even happened.

"Yup. Kiss Mommy bye, baby." She picked herself up off the floor as she watched Sofia run for Callie at full speed only to be swept up into her mommy's arms. Arizona was having a hard enough time getting off the floor in what she kept calling her old age; she had no clue how her girlfriend could so easily cart their daughter around like she was a four year old child. Granted, there were some years between them, but even Callie admitted that Sofia had progressed her aging process those first few years of her life and she felt older than Arizona actually was.

Once they were gone, Callie tried to go about her normal evening plans. While putting away her daughter's clothes in the closet, the shelf gave way, tumbling to the ground and bringing everything on it and under it down in one heaping mess. She stood for a moment as her heart raced in her chest before she, too, joined the mess on the floor, sobbing hysterically. At seven going on eight, Sofia had her own organizational methods and strict patterns. Callie could follow the patterns easily enough, but now everything was strung together on the closet floor and she knew she was hopeless to fix it. She also knew that it was going to cause a catastrophic meltdown when Sofia returned home and she couldn't do anything to stop it. It was all her fault and she felt like the world's worst mother. She didn't know what to do, so she sobbed until there were no more tears to cry.

"Arizona sent you." It wasn't a question as she threw open the door to find Noah standing in front of it.

"Yes. She said you were upset over something and wouldn't come to group and wouldn't talk." He didn't wait for an invitation because he knew he wasn't going to get one. Instead, he made his way past his best friend, who had puffy eyes and red, tear stained cheeks.

"I'm not going to talk to you either." Callie knew it was useless to pretend nothing was wrong when she'd spent the better part of the last hour in tears and the damage was apparent on her face.

"Yes, you are. What happened?" When Callie didn't move from the door, he grabbed her hand and led her over to the couch, grabbing the box of tissues from the coffee table and taking his seat next to her. He hated seeing her in so much pain.

"Sofia's getting older."

"That happens." He knew this wasn't about Callie's baby growing up, because she'd been _that _parent who rejoiced in each and every year, each and every milestone, that Sofia's life brought.

"Arizona wants another child." After what had just happened in Sofia's room, she couldn't keep it in any longer and she knew Noah of all people would never judge her.

"Okay—"

"I don't." It wasn't convincing at all, but it was the best she could muster.

"Okay—"

"But you already know that."

"Yes." Of course he knew that; Arizona was just as upset as Callie looked and when her girlfriend wouldn't open up to her, she pleaded for help from their friends.

"She won't take no for an answer." If this was just about Arizona ignoring Callie's no, Noah wouldn't be here and he knew that. There was something else there.

"Why don't you? Sofia's older; it's easier without having to chase two babies around. She's a self-sufficient seven year old." For the most part; he knew there were moments in their day that took the patience of Job to get through them, but she could maintain regularity easily enough the rest of the time.

Callie expected Noah to understand and not to question her, but instead he was playing Arizona's side and it hurt. It angered her, too. "Look, Noah. I don't want another child."

"If that was all this was, Arizona would be fine with that answer, but she doesn't understand, Callie. Help her understand. You're drowning here and she wants to be your life vest." He'd been watching, helplessly, as his best friend was struggling, but she wasn't letting anybody in.

"She won't understand." Callie grabbed for the tissues as the tears started again. She thought she had cried herself dry, but even after all the years of crying, she still had the enough stupid tears to fill the Grand Canyon.

"Callie—"

"You understand." It was only a whisper, but Noah immediately stopped arguing. He was unsure why this hadn't immediately popped in his head and he felt like an ass for pushing.

"Do you want Stacy to talk to her?" If anybody could give Arizona insight, it would be his wonderful wife; she'd been there with him years ago.

"No, I want her to respect my decision." Callie didn't want to explain; she didn't want Stacy to explain. What she wanted was Arizona to drop it and be happy with their life as it was.

"You know it's not that easy for either of you, Cal." He squeezed her hand in comfort, knowing a hug would break open the dam she was protecting so well and he wasn't the person to open that dam.

"It never is. I want things to be easy for once. Just once—just once." She stood up and walked toward Sofia's room where the mess of her closet still lay untouched.

"You guys need a vacation; the offer to join us in Florida is still open. It'd do you all some good." He looked over the mess and understood what was going to happen because of it.

"We'd love to, but you know Sofia can't handle theme parks anymore; it's too much for her some days just to go out to dinner in overcrowded restaurants. Thank you though." She was being sincere; they'd love to take a vacation, to get away from everything, but things were too complicated now.

"Callie, you know I'm here for you, but Arizona wants to be, too. She's not a mind reader and she hasn't been there, so she doesn't understand."

"I know." But that didn't mean she wasn't still afraid. "What are you doing?" Callie watched Noah open Sofia's sock drawer and pull out an envelope.

"Arizona has pictures of Sofia's closets and drawers just in case something like this happened. Let's put it back together." He pulled out the photographs and sorted through them until he found the most recent closet photos.

"Of course she does; she's Super Mom." She loved her girlfriend, she really did, but moments like these made her compare herself to Arizona and she never came out on top.

"Callie—"

"No, there's going to come a time when Sofia realizes all this is my fault and Arizona's been cleaning it up for me this whole time." And that day was going to be sooner than later and the thought of it made Callie want to die.

"Things will get better." He knew she didn't believe it, but he was going to keep saying it until she did. "Here, hold." He grabbed the shelves and started putting them back into place as Callie stood by and sulked.

"Doubtful."

"Maybe you need to go back to group. It's been _months_." They all needed a break sometimes, but this was more than a break; Callie was hiding.

"That's Arizona's baby." Callie started grabbing the stuffed animals and placing them on the shelves just as the picture showed.

"I didn't say go to the family support group, though showing her some support is nice too, but go find some place where you can open up without fear of judgment. You've become too close to us and can't do that anymore." He was glad for the tears to have stopped, even if it was only to fix the mess. Taking Sofia's clothing, he laid it out on her bed piece by piece so they could attack that part next of reorganization.

"Is it that obvious?" Callie hated being obvious; she was the strong one. _Was_.

"You take the newcomers under your wing. You've been there and don't want them to have to go through it alone, but you need to find that again, too." If support group was church, Callie was the greeter, the choir, the ushers, and the pastor. There was nobody there to shake her hand, sing for her, collect her money, or bear her burdens with her. She was an amazing role model for the new parents and they appreciated it, but they couldn't return the favor.

He was right and she knew it. She needed to be with people who had been down her path before, not those starting it. "I love you. When did you get so old and wise?"

"You're older than I am."

"But I'm hotter," Callie laughed; it felt so good to laugh.

"If I hadn't already had a vasectomy after Tommy's diagnosis, Stacy would give me one herself if she heard me agreeing with you." He took one last look at the photograph, satisfied they'd accomplished what Callie saw as the hopeless.

Callie's laugh was cut short as her pager screamed at her from her hip. "Crap, that's my pager. Damn it." She saw the emergency page requesting her presence back at the hospital even though it was her night off. "Arizona's going to kill me."

"Go to work; she'll understand."

"No, she won't. I promised we'd talk tonight."

"_She'll understand._" He wasn't just talking about work.

"I'll see you this weekend." She walked him out, grabbing her own belongings on the way.

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><p>Planning had gone amazingly well and Arizona felt confident that the summer plans would pan out just the way she dreamed. The kids all would be safe and surrounded by understanding people who actually wanted to be there and weren't there for just another paycheck. When Noah didn't return to the group, Arizona worried things hadn't gone well, but she refrained from texting him to check. She knew Callie sometimes needed somebody who wouldn't tattle to Arizona her every move and that was Noah. Arizona had Liz and Stacy, so she'd give Callie her moment of privacy. They were going to talk tonight, so she could have the now, because Arizona was having the later.<p>

"Where's Mommy?" Sofia watched Arizona's smile fade when she grabbed the note taped to the mirror by the front door.

_Pile up on the beltway. It's going to be an all-nighter. Sorry. ILY. –C_

"She had to work, baby girl," Arizona sighed. Of course she had to work because they were going to talk. "Let's get you ready for bed." She smiled sweetly at her daughter, not wanting Sofia to know she was upset.

"Can I stay up and wait for her?" Sofia knew when she left that her mommy was upset and she wanted to kiss her goodnight and make it better.

"Can you ever stay up late?" Arizona teasingly raised an eyebrow at her daughter; if anything, Mama was not the rule breaker in the house and their daughter knew better than to ask.

"When I'm at Uncle Mark's, I do. He says he's special."

"Yes, Uncle Mark is _very special _all right," Arizona laughed and swatted her daughter's rear end toward the bedroom.

"Will you read me a story?" Sofia walked right by her closet, not having a clue that only an hour before, it was a complete mess like her mommy had been as well.

"Don't we always read you a story?" It was the same questions every night as they prepared for bed. Will you read me a story? Will you turn on my night light? Will you kiss my teddy? Can I have cheerios when I wake up? Am I going to school tomorrow? The answers never changed and neither did their routine. When it did, sleep wouldn't come easy those nights and sometimes not at all.

Once Arizona was sure her daughter was down for the count, she made her way into her own bedroom. It was early still, but she knew if she didn't go to bed now, she'd end up crying all night. She wasn't sure whether her girlfriend really was called in or had lied and bailed for the night and it was eating her up inside. Callie promised they'd talk, but she'd promised that before and they were still playing that game. Digging deep into the back of her own sock drawer, she pulled out the purple velvet box she'd been hiding for months now. She wasn't one for grand gestures, but she was waiting for the perfect moment. The perfect moment had to be perfect, except it never seemed to come and she was scared it never would. Squeezing tight to the box in her hand, she cried herself to sleep wondering what she'd done wrong and how to fix things. Maybe it was all her fault; maybe she'd waited too long and Callie was the one doubting things. They hadn't broached the subject of marriage since Seattle and maybe Callie really had changed her mind; maybe dreams really did change.


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: _Not mine. Never were, never will be. If they were, Owen would fall on a spear and then tumble down the stairs and then get hit by a bus that explodes in a painful and fiery death. The end. Vultures would be involved as well and maybe snakes too.__

_A/N: Here's the next installment in the I Can See You Talking series. I hope you enjoyed the last story and although this one is a bumpy ride, that you'll stick around until the end. I know I always respond to my reviews but work got a little busy over the past few days and I wanted to get this up before too many days passed in between posts. I will be taking the time later this evening to contact each and every one of you that took the time to review. Also with the holiday weekend approaching and out of towners coming in, please be patient with new chapter posts until next Tuesday. _

_Beta'd by Sara; I hope you have a wonderful and happy birthday. :P_

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><p>"You're home! What are you doing home?" Callie was exhausted and intended to collapse in her bed for four hours of solid, uninterrupted sleep until she had to pick her daughter up from school at four, except her girlfriend was sitting on the couch reading and not operating on tiny humans like she was supposed to be doing.<p>

"My only surgery for the day tested positive for MRSA. She's going through treatment before we can open her up, so I took off for the rest of the day." Arizona knew, being noon, that her girlfriend had been on her feet for sixteen hours and was probably a dead woman walking, but after crying herself to sleep the night before and numerous almost breakdowns in the hospital today, they needed to talk. "Can we talk?"

"Yeah. I told you we'd talk." Callie was beyond exhausted, but she also heard the desperation in her lover's voice and couldn't ignore that. She didn't want to be responsible for that, so it was time to face the music. Grabbing a mug of coffee for an extra boost, she joined Arizona on the couch, handing the blonde her own cup.

"Thank you." Arizona was waiting on Callie; she couldn't ask the questions racing around in her head because she was too afraid of the answers. If Callie wanted out, she had to say it herself; Arizona was not going to help her girlfriend end what she saw as her forever.

"I love you." Callie needed Arizona to know that, to know how much she loved her. "What? What'd I say?" Tears filled the blue eyes staring at her, threatening to break both women with their presence.

"Nothing. I love you, too. So much, Callie. And Sofia so much. I do." Conversations starting with I love you always ended in goodbye; Arizona was sure of it.

"I know, Arizona. I love you both, too; you both are my world. Don't cry." Callie's heart was breaking because she knew how much she was hurting her partner. "Please don't cry."

"I'm sorry; I'm being stupid. When you didn't come home last night, I thought maybe—"

"I promised we'd talk, Arizona. I was called in and I couldn't do anything about it. I'm sorry. I thought I'd be there for a few hours, I didn't know I'd be getting home after noon the next day. I wasn't hiding from you."

"Talk to me. Tell me what's happening. I'm here for you, but I can't help if you don't talk to me." She didn't care how pathetic she sounded begging like she was; she wasn't going to lose her family for any reason.

"I love my family. I used to live to cut and drink and have wild sex with you among other kinds and I wanted a family but until I had you guys, my priorities were different. Now I have you guys and I live for you. I love the awesome surgeries and everything I do at work and making a difference in lives, but what I love even more is coming home to you two, cuddling up and watching Mulan for the billionth time in a month, or even folding laundry while you two cheat each other in Candy Land. Nothing compares to the high I get from the love in my own house. I love my family." Arizona and Sofia meant more to Callie than anything else in her life ever had; she'd do everything she could to protect them and give them what they wanted and needed, but she couldn't do the one thing that could possibly break her family if she didn't.

"Then why don't you want to make our family bigger? There'd be even more love to go around. I want that with you; why don't you want that anymore?" Arizona released a strangled laugh. "Oh god. Who knew our roles would be reversed? Here I am begging for children and you're refusing."

"I like our family how it is. We're so busy as it is; adding another baby to the mix would just make things harder." If she could convince Arizona without having to tell the truth, she would try her hardest.

"We're doctors. Life is always going to be busy, but that's no excuse. Plenty of people do it. _Talk to me._" Arizona wasn't going to let her off the hook.

Callie sucked in a deep breath; fine, she'd tell the truth. Her girlfriend would never look at her the same once she realized it too, but it was better than hurting Arizona. She'd rather Arizona hate her than be hurt by her. "Things with Sofia—" She didn't get to finish her thought as Arizona's phone rang.

"It's Sofia's school." Callie looked concerned as she watched Arizona pick up the phone.

"Yes, this is Dr. Robbins."

"Is she hurt?"

"Okay. No, it's no problem. We'll be right there."

"Thank you for calling. Bye."

"What? What happened? Is Sofia okay?" Callie started panicking when Arizona said nothing after hanging up the phone.

"Breathe Callie. She's fine. Somebody sat on her book bag and her juice box exploded all over. She had a little meltdown and they can't calm her down. She wants to come home. I'll go get her; you've had a long night. Go get some sleep," Arizona sighed. Another talk interrupted. The story of her life.

"No, I'm going, too. I _need _to go." Tears laced her voice as another layer of guilt was added to the already growing pile. Sofia hadn't ever had to come home from school because of breaking down and she knew the school was sugar coating it by just calling it a little meltdown.

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><p>"She's in shock, Callie. She had a meltdown in front of the whole school basically. She's embarrassed. It's nothing to worry over just yet." Sofia hadn't said a word since they picked her up at school, but Callie hadn't either and Arizona knew she was over processing everything. She was tired and Sofia was upset, so Callie was upset and Arizona felt helpless.<p>

"It's just been a long night and day. I need some sleep." They weren't going to talk as long as Sofia was home or at least awake at home, so Callie was going to take advantage of a few hours of shut eye before dinner rolled around.

"I have to go over to the office to do some work on the fundraiser event; I'll take Sofia and you get some sleep. We'll bring dinner home." Arizona watched her girlfriend crawl into bed and collapse without removing a single item of clothing. Grabbing her shoes, she unzipped each boot and pulled them off of an almost comatose Callie.

"No. Sofia stays. Go. Dinner good. Nuffin fried," Callie mumbled into her pillow. Her body couldn't move and her mind was shutting down.

"Callie, you're going to sleep and as tired as you are, you aren't going to hear her if she leaves."

"I'm not a bad mother." She shot up, wincing as her body felt like it was locking up on her.

"I didn't say you were a bad mother, but a tired mother you are," Arizona sighed. She'd have to go in late tonight if Callie insisted on keeping Sofia at the apartment. She wasn't going to upset her girlfriend any more than she already was.

"Please, go do your stuff, Arizona and save the world. Send Sofia in with me. She can take a nap. I won't sleep long. I promise." Callie rolled over onto her side as Arizona grabbed a blanket from the hope chest and threw it over her girlfriend.

"Are you mad at me for something? If it's because you think I'm too busy, I'll delegate better. I'm not doing this stuff to upset you, Calliope. I'm doing it for you, for Sofia, for our family." No matter what Arizona did lately, she felt like Callie was angry with her. The support group, summer camp, and Autism Awareness campaign were to make their lives better, but the more she did, the more Callie retreated into herself.

"No. Really, Arizona. I think you are the best mom in the world and I mean that. Go get the fundraiser stuff done and tonight we'll play a game or something before Sofia goes to bed." She was proud of her girlfriend and did think Arizona was the best mom in the world. It boiled down to that: Arizona was the best mom in the world and Callie was jealous because she would never measure up.

"I love you. Get some sleep and I'll send Sofia in." Arizona wavered between the doorway and living room as she watched Callie close her eyes. She wanted to understand what was happening between them, but now it was her turn to go. The fundraiser was having enough issues and she wasn't asking Callie to use her trust fund to help fund it; Callie had done that to get the campaign off the ground and Arizona wanted to prove to her girlfriend— well, everything. She'd missed too much and she was trying to make up for it now. It was both their faults, but she still needed to do more for them and for herself.

"You know it's creepy watching your mommy sleep!" Callie opened one eye to see her daughter sitting cross legged next to her on the bed, observing her sleep.

Sofia nodded and smiled and poked at her mother.

"It's not nice to poke sleeping lions," Callie teased, opening both eyes. She'd been asleep for less than half an hour; she could tell because her body was still screaming for more sleep.

"Sof, it's just me. Talk," Callie sighed when her daughter signed that she wasn't poking a lion. She was poking a teddy bear and teddy bears didn't bite.

"Do you want to talk about what happened today?" She watched her daughter's face turn beet red before her lip started quivering and tears fell from her eyes.

"Baby." Callie reached out and grabbed Sofia, pulling her down into her arms.

"I didn't mean to cry, Mommy. And they made fun of me." She was sobbing in her mommy's arms as Callie kissed the back of her head and rocked them both.

"It's okay. You are allowed to cry. Sometimes kids aren't very nice, but they didn't mean to hurt your feelings." Callie didn't know what to say to make it better; kids were mean, not like adults with the intention to hurt others, but they still caused damage just the same.

"I don't like crying. It hurts."

Callie understood more than her daughter would ever know. She'd spent so much of the past few years crying herself to sleep before and even after Arizona's arrival. More lately, because things for Sofia weren't improving as they had optimistically hoped. "I'm sorry, baby." She wrapped her arm tighter around Sofia's stomach until they were sealed tightly together. "I'm so sorry." Tears fell into her daughter's dark brown locks as she cried along with Sofia.

Long after Sofia was sound asleep, Callie stayed holding her daughter in her arms. Even in her sleep, Sofia looked tormented by the events of the day and that killed Callie. Sleep was where she was supposed to be allowed to escape, to run around and play and not worry about if her shoe laces were the same length or her cup of milk the right level. She was supposed to dream about unicorns and do cartwheels, but even in sleep, Callie couldn't protect her daughter.

* * *

><p>Parcheesi was being set up at the kitchen table while Arizona went to shed her jeans into something more comfortable. Callie was popping popcorn on the stove; she didn't believe half the rumors of the causes of autism, but she still was extra careful about certain things, most of those things being chemicals in the house. She used the microwave to heat up yesterday's coffee for herself or a hot pack for muscle strains, but mostly the machine sat empty and unused. Popping popcorn in not only a chemical filled, plastic-coated bag, but in the microwave was never going to happen in her house. Vegetables were washed three times and all meats were organic and not just ten percent organic, but Callie did her research and found the safest, most chemical free, free-range, local products <em>and <em>produce that she could. Their toilet paper didn't have fabric softener in it. Their laundry detergent was a safe alternative to chemicals that still got the job done, and vinegar replaced not only their fabric softener in the wash but, along with baking powder, it was the staple cleaner around the house. It had nothing to do with myths though and everything to do with fear. Fear that she'd done something wrong and she was trying to rectify it now.

"Are your allergies bothering you today?" Arizona walked out of the bedroom in the yoga pants she never actually wore for yoga; she just preferred their level of comfort, and a t-shirt.

"Nope. Pollen count hasn't gotten to me, knock on wood." Callie's back was to her girlfriend or she would have seen the contorted look on Arizona's face. When the blonde was changing into her comfy clothes, she emptied her pockets into the waste bin on Callie's side of the bed which was overflowing with used tissues that had not been there the night before. There were only two reasons for the plethora of tissues and if it wasn't allergies, it only meant Callie had been doing lots of crying. It explained why both her girls were extra quiet, Sofia from her school meltdown and Callie from a personal one after Arizona left.

"Okay." Arizona went to the pantry and grabbed an extra box of tissues, making sure Callie saw what she was doing, before disappearing into the bedroom to replace what she figured would be a now empty one. It wasn't because they needed it right this moment, but because Arizona wanted Callie to know she knew something was up and without upsetting Sofia, she was being manipulatively sly.

"Why are we playing Parcheesi with a seven year old? Shouldn't we be playing Mouse Trap or Mall Madness?" Really, it was Arizona who hated Parcheesi because they always kicked her butt, but using Sofia she hoped would mean they could play something less competitive that had more to do with luck than skill.

"I started playing Parcheesi at age five and this isn't as cluttered and messy as the other games." Which was code for _not _giving their daughter a reason to have a meltdown. Putting the pieces together for Mouse Trap made Callie want to throw the damn game against the wall sometimes and Sofia had already had a hard enough day. "Plus, it helps her with her math skills, right kid?" Callie smiled at her daughter who was currently scheming her next move to block both her moms from passing her by a blockade.

"Right!" Sofia smiled back. Callie had taught her never to let anybody win, which meant Arizona often lost. When her mommy wasn't around, sometimes—sometimes she would let her mama win at the card game Go Fish, but _only_if Mommy wasn't around. Mommy didn't let her win at anything just because she was a kid and since Mommy was her hero, she played just like she was taught when Callie was around.

"I haven't moved in three turns; you both with your stupid blockades. I thought this game was about getting your pieces home, not blocking others from moving," Arizona pouted. Two of her pieces were stuck behind a red-Callie blockade and the other two were stuck behind a blue-Sofia blockade. At the rate her yellow was moving, the rapture would come faster than getting her first man safely home.

"Stop whining," Callie laughed when Arizona stuck her tongue out.

"Yeah, stop whining, Mama," Sofia squealed when Arizona grabbed the little girl's chair and pulled it closer before she began tickling the small brunette.

"Mama!" Sofia cried. "Mommy, help."

"You're on your own, kid." She sat back, smiling at the two children. She loved moments like these.

"Mama. Mama, stop, I'm going to pee." Sofia and Arizona both roared with laughter until the little girl jumped up and took off for the bathroom.

"I love you." Arizona had become that needy girlfriend who declared her love all the time. She was being selfish; she _needed _to hear Callie say it back.

"I love you too, but I'm not moving my blockade." She grinned wickedly at her girlfriend.

"I wouldn't expect anything less from you." Even if she did want to win one game; she'd rather win on merit than by Callie letting her win. It was how they played and usually her loss in a board game was her gain in the bedroom. Enough pouting and whining over how unfair Callie was turned into a tickling match of their own, which turned into those intimate moments they'd been missing lately.


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: _Not mine. Never were, never will be. If they were, Owen would fall on a spear and then tumble down the stairs and then get hit by a bus that explodes in a painful and fiery death. The end. Vultures would be involved as well and maybe snakes too.__

_A/N: Here's the next installment in the I Can See You Talking series. I hope you enjoyed the last story and although this one is a bumpy ride, that you'll stick around until the end. For those celebrating the holidays, Happy Easter/Passover._

_Beta'd by Sara who keeps me on track about typing up my chapters well before they're posted. Thanks._

* * *

><p>Callie stood outside the nursery watching her partner cradle a newborn in her arms. Two surgeries in two days for the poor kid, but Arizona had faith she'd pull through. She was born strong, although not terribly healthy, but Arizona wasn't going to fail the baby or her parents. The look on Arizona's face was priceless as she was cooing and murmuring to the baby and Callie fell in love with her girlfriend all over again. Arizona had missed those moments with their own daughter and though it still ate her up inside, she now knew it was for the best at the time. She wanted to give that to Arizona again, to share the joy of holding their infant in their arms and bringing the baby into the world and into the lives of two loving parents who wanted nothing more than to have the baby, the extension of their little family, a piece of their hearts held in the body of another. She wanted to give the world to Arizona, but she couldn't and she wasn't sure how much longer the blonde would stick around to wait for that before she went off to find somebody who would give it to her.<p>

"Why are you here?" Arizona peeled off the garb she wore in the NICU and glared at her girlfriend. A week had gone by and they hadn't talked and things were just going downhill between them. Working with babies wasn't making it any easier on Arizona because it just threw back in her face what she'd never have.

"Your car is in the shop." The bite of Arizona's tone made Callie wish she hadn't decided to surprise her girlfriend and pick her up from work.

"Yeah? So? I took the metro here. I was planning on taking it home." Sofia was at the babysitter's for the night since they both were scheduled to work past her bedtime. Instead of screwing up her schedule, they'd just pick her up in the morning for school and that gave Arizona the out she needed for the night. She was planning on stopping by a local coffee shop, doing some research on their free wifi, and coming home extremely late with hopes that Callie would be already in bed. Another night of going home without talking was not an option for her and she didn't want a fight over it again either.

"Maybe I didn't want my girlfriend walking home in Chinatown from the metro in the dark," Callie snapped. Five blocks wasn't much. They were short blocks, but she still had to cross Massachusetts Avenue, which was a bitch even in daylight.

"I still have charts to do, Callie. You might as well go home. I'll catch a cab, if that'll make you feel better," Arizona growled. She didn't want a fight, but she was itching for one anyway.

"I'll wait in your office then." Callie didn't want to go home to an empty house; she wanted to go home with her girlfriend, who seemed pissed beyond pissed at her. Even with that being the case, she was going to wait.

"Callie, go home." It wasn't a request. It was an order.

She stood, unmoving from her spot. as Arizona began walking away. Tears threatened to fall, but she wasn't going to do this here, not at Arizona's work. "Are you—are you coming home tonight?"

"Sofia's at the babysitter's. I'm just going to stay here with the Miller baby in case something happens." That hadn't been her plan at all, but now she was just so angry, angry at both of them. She knew it wouldn't be safe for them to inhabit the same space, not if she wanted to have a girlfriend in the morning.

Arizona left Callie standing in the middle of the NICU hallway without looking back, but it was so much safer than the alternative. Callie was right: dreams change and hers had. She wanted babies and dirty diapers smelling up the bedroom, baby vomit staining her favorite blouse and two o'clock, four o'clock, and six o'clock feedings that left her exhausted and moody the next day from lack of sleep. Both of their dreams had changed and Arizona wasn't sure if she could let go of hers a second time.

* * *

><p>The tissue box in the bedroom was empty again and Callie was working her way through another one. It was just past midnight and there was no way she could sleep. Grabbing her laptop, she had one choice and only one choice to save her family and if that meant bringing her own world crashing down on top of her, it was worth the risk.<p>

Music was blasting through the other end of the phone when the person picked up. She knew if there was music, she wasn't alone, but it was too late to worry about anything else.

"HELLO?"

"Can you step outside?" Callie bit her lip; her voice hadn't changed at all and she'd know who was on the other end.

"Are you serious?"

"Please? I don't want anybody else overhearing this conversation," she begged, hoping to reach some piece of the other person's compassionate side. She knew her voice sounded pathetic after crying for hours and once upon a time, they cared about each other enough that that might be what swayed them in the other direction.

When Callie heard the vague sound of sirens in the background replace the chatter and music, Callie knew she had done what she asked. Holding her breath, she waited for her to speak again.

"What do you want? I'm drunk and it's cold." Callie could tell she wasn't so drunk because her speech wasn't the normal slurring her drunken state brought around.

"I need a favor."

"And you're calling me? Why don't you call—"

"Yes, you. I need a favor from _you. _You owe me one." And she was the only one Callie could trust.

"I don't owe you anything. You owe me an explanation; you owe a lot of people—"

"Please." Callie cut her off before she could begin her well-deserved rant. "If I didn't need your help, I wouldn't bother you, but I'm begging here. I need your help."

"What's wrong?" She had only heard Callie this distraught once before and knew it had to be serious.

"I'm coming to town. Do you think you guys could put me up?" This was the biggest, scariest thing she'd done in years, but it had to be done.

"Why can't you stay in a hotel?" If she put Callie up, that'd mean she had to lie, lie a lot and that meant a lot of people would be pissed off at her when they found out. Normally, she didn't care what people thought about her, but this was a very touchy subject; Callie was, for all intents and purposes, the devil.

"Because—because we share a bank account and I don't want her knowing yet. I'm coming to town. I need to save my family, and I can't do it without your help. Please, if I had anybody else, I'd never risk putting you in this situation; I know what this means." She didn't have any friends or family left and she hoped what they had shared once upon a time meant something. It meant something to her.

"So Arizona doesn't know you're coming? You are going to go home to her, though, right? You aren't running away? Because I won't hide you if that's what you are doing. I'm not going to be responsible for covering up for you because you are a chicken." Callie was wrong. She did have somebody there. She'd always have somebody there because friendship meant something; she didn't have many friends and the ones she did have, the ones she let in, would always be important to her, even if years of silence had gone by. That didn't mean she was going to make it easy; Callie didn't deserve easy.

"I'm going to go home to her. I just need to do this. I _need_to do this. It's important."

"When are you coming in? I'll pick you up at the airport. But if somebody finds out I'm helping the enemy, I will throw you under the bus first chance I get." Maybe that was a poor choice of words, but if things blew up in her face, she would throw Callie under the bus, but she'd also go with her. The woman she once knew, respected, and kinda loved as a friend, wouldn't ask for help if she wasn't desperate.

"I have one more phone call to make, but I'm planning on flying in on Tuesday, in three days. I'll email you the details. If you need anything, this number is my cell number." Callie let out a sigh of relief. One problem solved, two more to figure out.

"I figured. Nobody uses house phones anymore. I'll see you in three days."

"Thank you." If Callie could have smiled, she would have at the snark that hadn't changed in all those years.

"Cal?"

"Yeah?"

"It's good to hear your voice." The line disconnected before Callie could respond. She knew it was the most friendly of a response she was going to get and way more than she expected.

After making her next call and dealing with a lecture that she had already prepared for, everything was in place. She'd bought her plane ticket, cleared her calendar at work, sent the babysitter an email asking her to help Arizona with Sofia for a few days and promising a bonus for the last minute notice, and now she just had to explain to her girlfriend that she was leaving town, something she hadn't done in nine years, even though there had been offer after offer for her assistance on large and groundbreaking surgeries by colleagues past and present. She was terrified of leaving, even if she knew Sofia was going to be in not just good, but _awesome, _hands. She trusted Arizona with both of their lives; the two had made numerous trips out to Seattle since Mark came into Sofia's life and Callie knew that Sofia would be fine, but she was her mother and she was going to worry anyway. She was going to worry the whole time she was gone and she was going to worry what she was coming back to when she returned home.

* * *

><p>"Callie, I got an alert on my phone today about a purchase from an online travel company on our credit card. Are we going somewhere?" Arizona had avoided Callie for two days. She went home when she knew her girlfriend was at work, she would wait until Callie was asleep before she'd come home from work, and she ignored every text and phone message left for her. She claimed things with the Miller boy weren't going as planned, except he was progressing perfectly, better than they had ever hoped. She was lying. They weren't supposed to lie to each other, but Arizona's anger hadn't subsided any over the past couple days and she really wanted to avoid a fight until she could mourn the loss of her dreams once again.<p>

"I left you about twenty messages about that; if you had checked your voicemail or called me back, you would know." Callie knew Arizona's tactics and didn't doubt that every time her number came up on the caller id that she'd sent her to voice mail. She also knew that Arizona deleted each and every message left. She'd have been angrier if it didn't give her reprieve of having to live with Arizona while she was lying. It made lying easier because their time together was limited. Still more guilt was weighing her down, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

"What would I know?" Arizona hung Sofia's coat up and then her own while Callie continued to set the table for dinner.

"Dr. Scotts came down with pneumonia and can't make the conference on Orthopedics and Modern Medicine. I'm being sent in his place. I called to ask you if it was okay, but you didn't respond and I had to give them an answer. I was really their only option and since we're expanding our ortho department to include newer strategies for replacing shattered bones, I really do have to go. I figured you'd understand and the two of you would be fine without me for a few days. I already talked to Jenny and she's going to help out." She avoided eye contact while she pulled dinner out of the oven and finished preparing the salad, but that didn't matter because Arizona wasn't looking at her anyway. Guilt was eating at them both and that meant eye contact would be very limited.

"When do you leave?" It was a sigh of relief that followed her question, but Callie took it for nothing more than annoyance.

"Tomorrow morning. If it's inconvenient for you, I can cancel. I don't want to leave you hanging." She would cancel, too, if it meant upsetting Arizona even more. She'd reschedule, although that would surely push off the fate of the conversation they hadn't had yet even further.

"No, tomorrow's fine. Sofia and I will be fine. How long are you gone?" It didn't even cross her mind that this was a huge deal for both of them. She'd taken Sofia to Seattle to visit with her father, Uncle Mark, but never had Callie been the one to leave and she always got so sad every time they did.

"Three days, maybe four if it runs late. I'll let you know." They all sat down to dinner with Sofia signing grace as she'd done since she learned to sign. It was a special moment for Callie, even now, because it was Sofia's special thing. Signing grace always had been for the young girl and Callie doubted anything would ever change that.


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: _Not mine. Never were, never will be. If they were, Owen would fall on a spear and then tumble down the stairs and then get hit by a bus that explodes in a painful and fiery death. The end. Vultures would be involved as well and maybe snakes too.__

_A/N: Here's the next installment in the I Can See You Talking series. I hope you enjoyed the last story and although this one is a bumpy ride, that you'll stick around until the end. As I keep saying, thank you for reading and reviewing and all the lovely PMs. I love hearing from people and probably jumped ahead one chapter when I told you that there'd be answers in this chapter. The next one for sure, I promise. Sorry about that. I have it all written and get confused as to which chapter is next. Hope you all forgive me. _

_Beta'd by Sara who works really hard on my many mistakes. _

* * *

><p>"Remember, if you do laundry, she likes her socks folded from the toes up."<p>

"I know. And she likes her shirts alphabetized in colors. Unless you are planning on being gone for over a week, I don't think I'll touch the laundry, if that's okay with you." Arizona yawned before stretching her legs one last time in preparation for bed.

"But if you do, also don't forget to use the vinegar in the washer and tumble ball in the dryer. We're out of popcorn, so you'll have to go over to the farmer's market and pick more up before Thursday because Thursday is—"

"Popcorn snack day in her lunch. I know, Callie. I do. She buys a bottle of water every morning at the school store, so always make sure she has a dollar fifty. We've been doing this how long?" Arizona knew Sofia's schedule like the back of her hand; give her a day of the week or time of day and she could tell you exactly what her daughter would be wearing or eating or doing better than she could walk a first year through an appy at this point and she could do appys with her eyes closed.

"I can stay if you want; I can cancel, if you think—"

"We're going to be fine, Callie." Her voice lacked the annoyed tone that Callie expected. Arizona was being reasonably calm while she was being off the wall crazy.

"I know," Callie sighed, pulling Arizona closer to her and she almost cried when Arizona curled into the embrace instead of away from it. Things had sucked so badly lately and Arizona even shied away from their morning kisses. She hoped more than anything that when she returned, they could get their life back on track, but she also wasn't naïve enough to ignore the thought that coming back might also completely ruin them, if she got the news she was pessimistically expecting.

"If she has another meltdown at school, I can be on the first plane home."

She wasn't insulted over Callie's fears. She lived them every day herself and knew nothing she could say or do would change her girlfriend's way of thinking. Sofia was always on her mind, even when she was just in the other room and she always was going to worry about her daughter. "She'll be fine. Maybe you can relax while you are there. Every time we go to Seattle, you work yourself to the bone-"

Both women laughed at the unintended joke. "I just miss you guys so much when you're gone."

Rolling over to face Callie, Arizona's eyes filled with tears in the darkness of their bedroom. "Me? You miss me?" She knew she was being ridiculous, but she was so afraid of losing everything. They hadn't made it this far just to lose everything.

"Yes Arizona. God, I miss you all the time. I hate not working at the same hospital as you and I hate when I get home so late you are already sound asleep in bed or if I wake up and you're already gone. I know it's only going to be a few days, but I already miss you." Because Arizona had been gone longer than a few days; they hadn't talked about anything in weeks other than the baby issue which led to them fighting and _not_talking. They hadn't touched each other in longer than Callie could remember, held hands, cuddled on the couch, not even a teasing slap on the butt while one or the other stood at the bathroom mirroring preparing for bed. She missed her girlfriend and knew she was putting the space between them, but that didn't stop missing Arizona anyway.

She didn't want to start their separation with a fight and she didn't want Callie going away thinking anything but that Arizona loved her with all her heart and soul. They'd figure everything else out; they had to figure it out because she wasn't giving up. She crashed her lips against Callie's in desperate passion. She hated admitting how lost she was, but as the days went on without her partner's touch, Arizona found herself feeling emptier and emptier.

She wasn't _that _person or she wasn't supposed to be. Calliope Torres had changed that all those years ago and Arizona Robbins, the definition of who she was, was nothing without her girlfriend and now their daughter, too.

The desperate passion exploded as Arizona wasted no time in stripping her partner of the barrier of clothing. She needed to feel the heat of Callie's skin against her own, to run her fingers through the wetness she was responsible for, her and her alone. Arizona craved to worship the brown taut nipples pressing against her own hardened pinks. She truly believed they were made just for her, only for her. She could go from mother to lover in the sixty seconds it took to watch them harden to pebbles as an obvious witness to Callie's arousal for her. Even in the throes of anger and pain, she couldn't deny how much she needed Callie Torres to breathe.

* * *

><p>"I could have taken you to the airport," Arizona pouted as she watched Callie check and double check her carry-on luggage for all her necessities. She was not a light packer by any means, which meant all of her suitcases were stuffed to almost overflowing.<p>

"Noah will get me there safely. It's easier on you if you don't have to start your day with a meltdown." Schedules; they lived by schedules and Callie was afraid they'd die by schedules. You didn't disrupt the schedule without consequence and she wanted the next few days to go easy for her girlfriend and daughter.

"You always take us to the airport; it doesn't feel right." Although they'd shared a very intimate night together, when daylight began casting her light through the shadows across the Potomac River, the same doubts and fears that the cover of darkness of the night had cloaked returned with a vengeance.

"Mommy, can you bring me an armadillo home from Texas?" Sofia stood in her doorway, rubbing at her eyes. She woke up early because she wanted to say goodbye to her mommy.

Arizona laughed; they were a pet-free home for a reason, but that didn't stop Sofia from trying on a daily basis for some exotic pet or another. "How about a postcard? Maybe if Mommy has time she can find one with an armadillo on it?"

Callie froze; she hadn't calculated bringing souvenirs home from her trip.

"Okay." Sofia shrugged. She didn't really care much about a postcard.

"That was easy." Callie wasn't actually going to be anywhere near Texas, but if that meant she had to fly into that airport just to get a postcard on her return trip, she'd do it. Only if it came down to it, which she was hoping it wouldn't have to. She was lying to everyone and it was killing her, but she was doing it for the good of her family. She had to keep believing that and she hoped Arizona would too, when she finally told her the truth.

"It's five in the morning. She's barely awake." Arizona didn't mean to snap, but she wasn't taking Callie to the airport and she was scared all over again.

"Can I have a kiss goodbye?" She ignored the tone of her girlfriend's voice and looked at her sleepy daughter, who nodded but remained in her doorway until Callie started toward her. "Be good for Mama." Callie snuggled her daughter in her arms before releasing her in the direction of her bed. "Get some more sleep, baby girl."

"What about you?" Callie hated that she even had to ask her girlfriend for a kiss, especially after the night they'd just shared, but Arizona was back to being cold and recluse.

"Are we going to talk when you get home? I can't live this way anymore." Arizona, like her daughter, didn't move from her spot. She was biting her lip in uncertainty because she didn't want to start this morning fighting and knew that sending Callie away with her last thoughts of Arizona being angry with her wouldn't do anybody any good. Between Callie's recent insecurities and what Arizona saw as unwarranted, low self-esteem, having doubts, and being apart from the blonde would only cause a bigger rift between them when she returned.

"Arizona, I promise when I get back, we _will _talk, but you have to stop running away too, just because you're afraid to rock the boat." The divide on whose fault it was that they hadn't talked was fifty-fifty. When Callie would try to open communication, Arizona would not be in the frame of mind to deal with her and would abruptly change the subject or leave altogether. When Arizona wanted to talk, Callie would succumb to her fears, not having had time to prepare herself, and she'd do whatever it took to get out of it.

"I know." Arizona looked behind Callie at Sofia's reappearance. Apparently there'd be no more sleep in her house this morning.

"When I return, we'll put the goofball over there to bed, and we'll sit down and talk." Callie nodded in the direction of their daughter, who was setting up a _very _early morning tea party for her and her mama to have once Callie had left. "Just promise me you'll listen to what I have to say without arguing first?"

"Without arguing? What do you mean without arguing, Calliope? I don't ar—oh. Point made." Arizona laughed. She couldn't even blame it on the early morning hour that it was because Callie was right. Arizona did tend to argue before she shut up and listened. "Call me when you're settled tonight?" She finally gave in and uncrossed her arms, letting her girlfriend know it was safe to approach.

"I'll text you; it'll probably be late here." Callie reached Arizona's open arms and hugged her tight, burying her face into the soft skin of the blonde's neck. "I'm going to miss you."

"If you decide four days, let me know." Arizona didn't want her to be gone one day; all of the sudden, she became needy and clingy and didn't want to let go.

"I'll try to be home in three."

"Go." Arizona pulled back and kissed her girlfriend's cheek. "Noah's waiting."

"I love you." Callie dared one last glance in Sofia's direction. It was killing her to do this, but she'd already done so much damage. She had to figure out how much more she was going to do. "I love you, baby girl."

"Bye, Mommy." Sofia waved from her tiny play table where she was setting up her stuffed toys to join them in their tea party.

"I love you," Arizona whispered as she watched her girlfriend leave the apartment.

"Well, kiddo, looks like it's just you and me. Wanna join me for some cuddle time in bed before we have to get up for school?" Arizona needed the comfort of her daughter in her arms; she was so close to breaking and Sofia always brought her back to reality.

"No. Play time." Sofia took her own seat and waited for Arizona to join her. "Cookies, please."

"Oh ho, no! We are not having cookies at five in the morning." She couldn't help but laugh at the serious expression on her daughter's face.

"Please?"

Knowing they both needed the comfort, Arizona disappeared into her bedroom and reappeared with what had been a well-hidden box of individually wrapped donuts. They were a forbidden no-no in their house, but what Callie didn't know wouldn't hurt them. Refined sugar wouldn't kill her daughter once in a blue moon and Arizona _needed_the treat to pick her up since cuddle-time was not going to happen. "Don't tell Mommy and you can have two."

Sofia's grin spread as she watched her mama unwrap a white, messy, powdered donut from the plastic and put it down on the china plate in front of her. "What about Teddy and Froggy?"

"Oh, how can we forget Teddy and Froggy?" Arizona laughed, knowing that two donuts for her daughter would be three, but she was enjoying the eager look of satisfaction on her daughter's face too much to care.

Even though Arizona's mind was currently boarding a plane to take her for three thousand miles away, she did her best to humor her daughter. "Would you like more tea, Miss Sofia?" Arizona picked up the empty teapot and pretended to top off the teacups of the other party occupants.

"Yes please, Miss Mama." Sofia giggled when water sloshed out of the porcelain pot and all over the table. "Oops."

"Yes, Miss Sofia, oops." Arizona faked a glare at her daughter, sending the small child into a louder fit of giggles. "You know we don't fill the teapot without permission."

"I didn't. Mommy didn't empty it on Sunday." Arizona immediately screwed up her nose at the idea of stale and probably super germy water all over the table and her bare knees.

"Mommy's going to be in trouble for that one then. Should we leave the mess for her to clean up when she gets back?" She teased her daughter, knowing Sofia would never let a mess go unattended. Her autism might have an effect on her cleaning habits, but so did Callie's incessant need for a clean home. Sofia was the spitting image of her lover and she loved every bit of it.

"No, Mama, we should clean it up for her." Sofia giggled again.

"We probably should. We always come home to a clean house when we go visit Uncle Mark. We should probably let her come home from her conference to a clean house, too."

"Mama?" Sofia watched as Arizona grabbed the roll of paper towels and began sopping up the water.

"Yes, Miss Sofia?" Arizona was staying in character, not realizing Sofia's mind had left the tea party.

"Can you teach me not to cry?" Sofia was serious.

"Teach you not to cry? What do you mean?" She stopped cleaning to look at her daughter. Sofia was biting her lip just like she did when she didn't know how to approach a tough subject. That was all her and as much as she loved seeing Callie in their daughter, she loved seeing herself too.

"I don't like crying and when I cry, it upsets Mommy. I think that's why she's so sad, because I cry a lot. You don't cry. Can you teach me to be strong like you?" In twelve little words, Sofia broke Arizona's heart into a million pieces. She didn't know keeping her own emotions in check had such an effect on her daughter and not in a good way. Just because she didn't cry in front of Sofia didn't make her strong. It made her weak because she couldn't share her emotions with her family; it had nothing to do with strength. Being strong would mean letting Callie in, sharing her fears and doubts and hurts with her lover, but instead she closed herself off from Callie and in turn, her daughter, too.

"Sofia, crying doesn't mean you aren't strong. Look at all the obstacles you've overcome that we never thought you would. You're the strongest kid I know and I'm so proud of you." They celebrated each milestone in Sofia's life as any parent would, but what mattered more to Callie and Arizona were the milestones they were told Sofia would never see. They cherished each and every moment their daughter flourished and hoped she'd continue exceeding expectations. If she didn't, they'd never ever let on their disappointment show, because Sofia could never disappoint them. She always made them proud, regardless of everything going on in her life.

"You don't cry, Mama. Why?"

"I do, baby. I just hide it." Arizona felt horrible; her seven year old daughter was pointing out her biggest flaw and how much it was hurting everybody.

"Why?"

"I don't know, Sofia. I don't know." Arizona returned to cleaning up the mess as tears pricked her eyes. Even then, she couldn't let them go and she hated herself for it.

* * *

><p>It was raining when her plane landed, which caused an almost three hour delay in her arrival. That meant she was going to be catching a cab and would have no down time before step one of the reason she was here. She knew she could always go get the key and get settled in, but she dreaded that idea even more than following through on her reason for being there. The weather was appropriate and only made her feel even less welcome than she knew she was going to be, if that was even possible. It also made her feel like nothing had changed, like she didn't have a girlfriend and daughter waiting at home for her to get her act together. She felt oddly at home, but knew that wasn't going to last much longer.<p>

"Where to?" The cabbie closed the trunk of his car on her luggage before climbing into the driver's seat.

"First star to the left and straight on 'til morning." Callie laughed at herself when he eyed her suspiciously as if she'd been drinking on her flight. No, she hadn't had a single sip of alcohol in years, though she contemplated it numerous times on the flight over. Rattling off the address she knew by heart, Callie sat back and watched the skyline of the city appear before her. It was closing in on lunchtime and traffic was picking up, which was a blessing for once. It gave her a chance to catch her breath before she sealed her fate.

"Nice area. Are you visiting friends or family, here for work, or are you moving here?" The cab driver tried to make conversation, except Callie wanted none of it. She wanted to have him turn around and take her back to the airport and the more he talked, the closer she got to telling him.

"None of the above."

"I've lived here fifteen years myself. Never thought I'd love the place, but I'll never leave. It's home. The weather leaves something to be desired, but isn't that the case anywhere you live?"

"Yeah, sure," Callie numbly answered the closer they got to her destination.

"We're in for bad weather tonight; this front came out of nowhere. Forecaster said we had sunny and warm days ahead and then bam, it's cold and wet and rainy. Almost as if we're preparing for the end of the world," he joked around, not realizing he was only fueling her insecurities and fears. The storm came with her arrival and she didn't doubt it would subside when she departed again. Even the city didn't want her back and that left her little faith that her presence would be welcomed by anybody else.

"Here we are." He pulled up outside of a tall brick building as Callie's breath caught in her chest. "That'll be thirty even. Two extra for the luggage; we're supposed to charge five per piece, but you look like you could use a break. We all need a break once in awhile. You got an umbrella ma'am, 'cause it's messy out there. I've got an extra you can have, free of charge. Consider today your lucky day." The cab driver handed Callie the accessory in exchange for the fifty in her hand.

"Keep the change." She thanked him and climbed out to retrieve her suitcases. Everything felt like it was in slow motion as she made her way into the building.

Once inside, she stopped and stared at the mailboxes, as was her first instinct to do. She had to laugh at herself because she hadn't changed as much as she thought over the years. Her body still had a mind of its own and went into autopilot without her knowledge. At least she didn't overlook the boxes and end up in a jail cell for breaking and entering, as would have been the next step her numb mind would have allowed. Instead, she now stood, slightly shaking as she contemplated what to do next. _Elevator. Stairs. Elevator. Stairs. _She fought with herself over which path to take to her doom. Or what felt like her doom at least. The elevator took her there much faster, but the stairs risked her being seen and having to make explanations she wasn't ready to make. Risking an uncomfortable situation over a quicker route, Callie took the steps painfully slowly. Her speed was as if she was following her three year old daughter when Sofia learned to take the steps one at a time. It always took them ten times as long to get to their apartment, but Sofia demanded the stairwells over the elevator; she was so proud of her accomplishments that she wanted the praise she got for doing it every chance she could take.

Fidgeting with the bags on her shoulders, Callie sucked in a deep breath. She could hear movement on the other side of the door which was a relief, even if she knew they weren't at work and the only other possibility was for them to be home. She wasn't sure she could wait any longer even if she didn't want to do this. It was because she had to do this. Knocking softly, Callie contemplated turning around as her hand was pulled back to her side. She could go home, explain everything to Arizona, explain that she was a failure and couldn't give her what she so wanted and needed, and let Arizona go to find just that. As she turned around, the door swung open.

"Holy shit. It's the prodigal daughter come home."


	5. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: _Not mine. Never were, never will be. If they were, Owen would fall on a spear and then tumble down the stairs and then get hit by a bus that explodes in a painful and fiery death. The end. Vultures would be involved as well and maybe snakes too. And today we'll add crocodiles to the mix. Maybe a badger too.__

_A/N: Here's the next installment in the I Can See You Talking series. I hope you enjoyed the last story and although this one is a bumpy ride, that you'll stick around until the end. _

_Beta'd by Sara who works really hard on my many mistakes._

* * *

><p>She sat on the couch, watching him pace back and forth as the shock of her sudden appearance was a little too much for him to bear. It had been—it had been a very long time and he wasn't prepared for her arrival at all. Although the anger had vanished years ago when his daughter came into his life, the sight of Callie Torres at his front door brought it back along with a wave of disappointment.<p>

It was expected and even warranted, but it still hurt her all these years later what she had done to the man who was once her best friend. Even knowing what she knew now, she wouldn't have changed what she did; it was for the best in the end, but she felt guilty all over again, guiltier than she felt for depriving Arizona of Sofia all those years.

"You want genetic testing?" This wasn't the reunion he expected and he wasn't sure he understood.

"Yes."

"Why?" He could see her nerves were shot to hell and it looked like she hadn't slept in weeks; whatever was bothering her had to be a gigantic problem for her to fly all the way out to Seattle and risk what she was risking.

"I _need_to know, Mark." She sat fidgeting with the cap of the bottle of water in her hands as he continued pacing. For her, this was life or death and nothing else mattered; she needed to get him on board.

"Where?" They'd talked on the phone enough times over the past couple years. Why she needed this now without notice, he still didn't get. And why she couldn't have asked him out to DC to get it done was another question.

"Bailey said she'd do it. Her work with the diabetes is close enough in genetics testing that she has the means. Dr. Harris has experience as well and is going to lend a hand." Bailey wasn't thrilled at the prospect, not one bit, but she understood the dire need and agreed. She agreed because she knew time was against them and Callie couldn't wait for answers any longer.

Finally taking a seat across from her, he stared at the woman who used to be his best friend, the woman with whom he made a child, and with whom he had wanted to share his life because he had loved her. Not the way Arizona loved her, but loved her enough to try to make it work because that's the man he had turned into after years of being an asshole. Callie helped make him that man and she was also responsible for destroying him again. "Are you prepared for that? You've been gone nine years. You won't even come back here when Arizona brings Sofia to visit. A lot of people don't like you, Cal." Callie Torres had become the Erica Hahn of Seattle Grace. When people talked about bailing, it was, _don't pull a Torres_. When patients got out, mostly from the peds ward, the alert would be look out for a Torres, followed by a description of the patient. She had no idea what she was in for going back to that hospital.

"This isn't about me. It's about Sofia and Arizona. She wants to have a baby with me, Mark. She wants me to carry it and for her to be able to do everything we missed before, together. She wants my morning sickness and mood swings, the whole shebang. I—I can't until I know." As it stood this moment in time, Callie Torres didn't want another child: not in her womb, not from her egg, not of her genetics. Her blood was poison and she saw no way around that.

"You love Sofia, Cal. Arizona gushes all the time about what a wonderful, loving, and accepting mother you are. Why does this even matter?" Mark didn't understand the problem still, but he didn't live it daily. He didn't hold their daughter when she broke down in sobbing fits or rock her to sleep when she was physically shaking so hard it took two of them to keep her on the bed. He didn't see the worst and didn't have an ounce of understanding about it either.

"It does." She was begging with him; he had to do this.

"Why?"

"Because Sofia's life sucks. It sucks, Mark, and I can't change it. I can't make it better and it's all my fault. I won't do that to another child. I ruined her life." In the spectrum of autism, children went one of three ways. They improved with age, outgrowing the worst of it, they stayed status quo and life went on, and in Sofia's case, as she aged, things got worse and they were constantly at a full speed run to keep up.

"What if we find nothing or what if it was my genes?" Mark didn't know anything about autism: the causes, the reasoning, the myths, but he did know that Callie was truly upset and he would do anything for their daughter. He'd do anything to make her see this wasn't her fault, but he knew that there was a good chance nothing would ever convince Callie of that.

"I can't explain to Arizona why I'm a failure. She won't get it. I have to—I need the proof in black and white. She sees things on that level."

"You aren't a failure, Callie. These things happen."

Tears she'd been holding back since she'd left DC finally came spilling out. Her dirty little secret was exposed. "Mark, it runs in my family. My cousins both have boys with autism." Callie already knew what the outcome was going to be, but she needed it to make Arizona understand, too.

"We'll get you what you need." He finally crossed the room to take her in his arms; it was the first time in nine years he'd touched his best friend and after seeing her like this, he knew forgiveness was the only option for them.

* * *

><p>It didn't take long for the buzz around Seattle Grace to include the arrival of Callie. Doctors and nurses who had never met the woman were talking and gossiping like it was their business and the people whom Callie used to call friends were the worst offenders.<p>

"Do you believe she has the balls to come back in here? That'd be like Izzie showing her face after disappearing off the face of the earth. At least Robbins isn't here to have to deal with the gossip; she was a big enough part of it when Torres left in the first place. What she did to Robbins was despicable." Alex rambled on and on as he and Teddy stood around the nurses' station in the ER with no idea that the topic of their conversation was only feet away.

"Did you hear why she's here? Gloria, the nurse up on four Arizona dated after Callie left, she said Callie had a brain tumor and came back for Shepherd to cut her open. Serves her right, really; not that I'd wish harm on her, because Arizona loves her, but you don't treat people that way and think you can get away with it." Teddy was not an immature woman by any means, but she loved Arizona and bore witness to what Callie's disappearance did to her friend. She'd forever have hatred for the woman who broke her best friend's heart regardless of the whys surrounding it. It didn't help matters that it was because of Callie that Arizona now lived an entire country away, leaving Teddy to flounder without a local best friend anymore.

"Dude, no way! Torres has a brain tumor? Think I can get in on that surgery?"

"How about you two worry about your own damn patients and go do something—anything not here. You're not being paid to stand around here acting like morons and gossiping about stuff you know nothing about. Torres used to be your friend and you have no idea what the woman has been through, brain tumor or no brain tumor; it'd be nice for you two to show a little support. I expect this behavior from the interns, not two respected attendings." Bailey shook her head, having overheard the conversation in its entirety. Granted, she knew Callie was coming back to Seattle Grace and knew the reasons behind it, but even if she had just come back for a pleasure visit, nobody had the right to talk trash about her like these two baboons were currently doing.

"Ignore those idiots. They don't think before they open their mouths. It's an illness. We've yet to find a cure, but those are the first two on the list for transplants if it ever happens."

"It's fine. I've heard worse and some of it from Arizona herself." Before the ground rules had been set, Arizona and Callie would fight like two bitter, old people. They hadn't let go of the past enough to move forward and both of them were guilty of bringing the past into their fights just to win. It took some time and a lot of crying, but they came to an agreement that the past was no longer allowed to be an issue; they were building a future together. They both made mistakes and this was the time to rectify them. Until that happened, though, Arizona often through Callie's mistakes in her face and vice versa for Callie. They fought dirty.

Miranda started walking at a fast pace, forcing Callie to jog after her. "It's not all right. People need to learn to stay out of other peoples' business. Karev's a fine one to talk about being a jerk. The boy puts Mark Sloan to shame with his indiscretions and doesn't apologize for it." Bailey didn't gossip, but she was trying to make Callie feel better. She was one of the few people who knew there was a fragile woman behind the hardcore exterior the taller woman put on, just like she knew that hearing her friends talk like that would push Callie closer to the edge on which she was already standing.

Once they reached the room that held Callie's fate, Bailey began prepping for a simple blood draw. "You know all of this is experimental. Nothing's been confirmed in the field of science. One doctor says this; another scientist says that. We could be making a mountain out of a mole here, Callie."

"It's the best we have; I need to know, Miranda." She wasn't going to take no for an answer even if she had to stand up to Miranda Bailey.

"What's a piece of paper going to prove that we don't already know? Is it going to tell you that you're a fine mother? That your daughter thinks the world of you and Arizona? She realizes her life is harder, but she's not unhappy. That little girl is the happiest child I've ever seen. So what if she has moments that aren't fun? That's life."

"Life? My daughter wakes up screaming in the middle of the night for no reason that anybody can understand. She breaks down if she her shoe laces aren't the same length or her books are out of order. They're getting worse and worse. That's not life. That's a life sentence that she was given by me. She's stuck living my screw up."

"Your screw up? Callie Torres, you are a well-educated doctor; you know you did nothing wrong. These things happen and nobody has been able to figure out why. One in eighty-eight children has autism; varying degrees, yes, and Sofia one of the unlucky ones, but you can't blame yourself. Mark doesn't blame you and neither does your girlfriend."

"It's only a matter of time before they do."

"That's why you're here? So you can have proof for Arizona to blame you? What is going through that thick skull of yours? That woman loves you and she loves your daughter, her daughter. If genetics is the cause of this, then we'll have to blame your parents and their parents and their parents' parents. Come on, Callie, we aren't always dealt a fair deck of cards, but we play with what we have."

"I can't protect Sofia. It's too late. All I can do is try to make her life better whatever way I can, but I can protect any other child I'd have. If this is my fault, I won't have any more kids. I can't knowingly do that to them."

"Then we should be checking for Down Syndrome and Huntington's Disease. How about Brittle Bone Disease and any of a million different mental disorders, too? Why stop with autism? If you are so afraid of screwing up your kid, why not just get your tubes tied now? I can set up an OR for you and do it myself. Might as well get Sofia's tied, too. And who knows what Arizona's carrying around in her DNA? I've probably already screwed Tuck up beyond repair; while I'm at it, I should have him sterilized as well. We wouldn't want to chance anything." Bailey was being ridiculous, but so was Callie and she hoped the other woman would get it.

"I'm scared." Callie started sobbing from her lecture. It hadn't occurred to her how stupid she sounded until Bailey pointed it out and it humiliated her to no end.

"Honey, you don't feel this way because Sofia has autism; you feel this way because you're a parent." Bailey untied the elastic from around Callie's arm before pulling out the needle. She wasn't finished collecting her blood, but she didn't need it anymore anyway. "Go home, Callie. Hug your daughter tight and enjoy the few years you have left before she grows up and goes out on her own and doesn't need you anymore. Cherish every moment you have with her, her and Arizona. Give her a little brother or sister to torment. You were made to be a mom; everybody knows it, so go make the rest of your dreams come true."

* * *

><p>Arizona Robbins never took life in a leisurely pace. She piled enough on her plate so that she'd always be busy because she liked being busy. She didn't enjoy sitting in front of the television night after night, nor did she find any pleasure in lazy Saturday mornings. Having a family changed that for her, but not by much. Often times after Sofia went to bed, Arizona found herself still cramming in as much as possible in the short hours before bed that she'd usually have all evening to accomplish before children. She still found time in her day to work out, even if it meant two hours less sleep while she'd slip out to the condominium gym and return before everybody in the house woke up. The Autism Awareness campaign needed so much attention and she'd budget and plan until the wee hours of the morning while her partner slept soundly next to her in bed. Although the family support group was run by the community involved, it still needed a leader and that leader was Arizona. The one night a week affair often bled into two or three nights when emergencies would arise or things needed to be done. Arizona Robbins was super woman, super mom, and a crappy partner, but it never occurred to her that she was any of those things because this was just whom she was; it was always how she'd done things. Now with Sofia in the picture, it was daughter first, obligations second, and everything else was tied for dead last. Everything, including one Callie Torres.<p>

If Arizona had taken ten seconds to contemplate what was going on between them instead of trying to fix it before she even knew what was wrong, she might have seen she shared more blame in this than she was taking on, but that never occurred to her. Right now, it wouldn't occur to her because she was so angry. It didn't take her long to become furious after Callie left to catch her plane. She had time to go to a conference for work, but no time to talk to Arizona, no time to show up at a damn family support group meeting and give her girlfriend a little support. Callie had no time when Arizona overheard some of the parents of Sofia's classmates making cruel and ignorant comments about their daughter's "condition" to help her start an awareness campaign so that maybe the idiots would understand a little bit of what was going on before opening their big idiot mouths. No, Callie had no time to help; she wrote a check and wished Arizona good luck, but a conference that Callie had no business attending, for _that, _she made the time. Arizona was livid, beyond livid actually, because while Callie had been sitting on the back burner of her life for months now, she finally understood what it felt like not to be a priority. It was never, ever for lack of love for either of them, but because they had the hardest time opening up to each other. Neither woman set out to make the other feel inferior, but it happened and where Callie sat quietly in the background, Arizona Robbins was not that woman. Having three days to stew over such things only made matters worse and Callie had no clue what she was going to come home to find and she sure as hell wasn't prepared for this.


	6. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer: _Not mine. Never were, never will be. If they were, Owen would fall on a spear and then tumble down the stairs and then get hit by a bus that explodes in a painful and fiery death. The end. Vultures would be involved as well and maybe snakes too. And today we'll add crocodiles to the mix. Maybe a badger too.__

_A/N: Sorry for the delay in getting this out; I've been having internet problems at home and finally have a break in my day to post during my lunch break at work. I'll try to be better in the future and I hope this chapter finds everybody well. Thank you so much for all the lovely PMs, I know I have been late in answering them but I really appreciate all your kind words and you taking the time to send me messages and leave reviews here. Here's the next installment in the I Can See You Talking series. I hope you enjoyed the last story and although this one is a bumpy ride, that you'll stick around until the end. _

_Beta'd by Sara _

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><p>Callie wanted to leave Seattle as fast as she had gotten there, but she owed Mark explanations and wasn't going to leave him hanging once again. They were stuck together for life again and she didn't want to alienate the father of her daughter further. He was relieved that she'd decided to abandon the tests and, this time, happy to see her go. Sending her home to her girlfriend and their daughter was more important to him than catching up on lost years. He made her promise to return, the next time for the sole purpose of visiting him. They were a family and though they couldn't erase their past, Callie was finally going to give them a chance at a future. She would always carry around the guilt of her actions that put the rift between them in the first place, but so would Mark. He had plenty of time to analyze their situation and knew without a shadow of a doubt that he and Arizona were just as guilty as the woman who fled with their daughter. Booking a last minute flight had Callie landing in DC in the early hours of what would have been day three of the faux medical conference. It was called the red eye for a reason, because after a night of flying in uncomfortable airplane seats, Callie looked like shit. Normally she would have freshened up a bit before heading home just because she did those things for Arizona, but she was hoping her less than stellar looks would help her situation when she told her girlfriend the truth. If Arizona felt sorry for her, she wouldn't yell as much. Hopefully.<p>

It was a little after five in the morning when she tiptoed through the front door; she had intended on slipping into bed and waking Arizona up with cuddles and kisses except her girlfriend was already awake, sitting on the couch doing what Callie could only assume was campaign work.

"Hi." She stood in the foyer after putting her bags down, shifting from foot to foot. By the look on Arizona's face, she was not thrilled to see her girlfriend home.

"Hi." Arizona returned her attention to the paperwork in front of her; her anger at Callie hadn't subsided any and her unexpected early arrival home only irritated her more.

"I know it's early, but can we talk?" Sofia wasn't due to be awake for another two hours and that gave Callie plenty of time to explain.

Rolling her eyes, Arizona still didn't look up. "No, I'm busy."

"Arizona—"

"Now you want to talk? No, Callie. Not everything is on your timetable. I've been begging you to talk for weeks and I'm busy now, so no." Talking when she was this angry would only lead to yelling, which would only lead to waking Sofia, which would in turn cause a meltdown before their day even began. She was not doing this now.

"I can explain." Callie finally made her way into the living area, taking a seat on the couch. Her eyes were begging Arizona to listen, but the blonde refused to look up at her.

"I don't want to hear it." She threw the stack of papers from her lap onto the coffee table before jumping up and taking off for their bedroom. She couldn't look at her girlfriend; time and again Arizona had given up dream after dream for Callie, but just this once she wanted Callie to cave, to make her feel important and give her dreams a chance, too.

Following quickly behind, Callie stood in the doorway as Arizona grabbed a suitcase out of the closet and started haphazardly throwing clothes into it. "What are you doing?"

"Packing."

"Where are you going?" Callie was frozen; this wasn't happening.

"Home. I need to clear my head Callie and I can't do it around you. I need space." She needed to decide if she could continue in this family without her needs being met, too. She needed to decide if they would make it through this and come out stronger, because if they couldn't, she needed to figure out how to leave everything she ever wanted behind. She'd still have Sofia, but she'd have to leave Callie once and for all.

"I'm sorry." Tears streamed down her cheeks as she watched Arizona packing up their life; she didn't want this to be it, but Arizona wouldn't listen to her. It was always their problem; they couldn't talk and they couldn't listen.

Sighing as she zipped up her suitcase, Arizona turned to look at the woman she loved more than life itself. "Me, too."

"I love you." She was begging Arizona to stay.

"That's never been the problem, Callie."

"Are you ever going to let me explain?" Callie dared to take steps into the bedroom, hoping if she remained calm that Arizona would, too, that Arizona would sit on the bed and let her apologize and explain.

"I think it's too late. I'll call you when my plane lands." She grabbed the suitcase off the bed and brushed past her girlfriend for the front door. "I'll explain to Sofia when I call where I am."

"Please."

Dropping her bag by the door, Arizona looked at her girlfriend standing in the doorway to their bedroom one last time. "Right now, I'm not going to listen. You have to let me go."

"I can't." Callie started sobbing; she couldn't let Arizona get on that plane because she wasn't sure she was coming back.

"Callie, I'll be back."

"For— for us, all of us, or just for Sofia?" She wasn't sure she wanted the answer, but she had to prepare herself.

"I don't know right now." Because she didn't; she didn't want to leave, but if she stayed, things would only end up that much worse. Arizona needed to leave or risk losing everything.

Callie watched as Arizona grabbed her jacket from the hooks and walked out the door. She felt like life was in slow motion before crashing down around her.

In the grand scheme of things, Callie had been waiting for this all along, but she didn't figure it would be before Arizona even found out the truth. Preparing for this over the past few months did nothing to stop the stabbing pain in her heart as the realization that her future just walked out the door and there was a good chance she wasn't coming back.

"Mommy, you're home." Sofia rubbed at her stuffy nose as she observed her mom trying to wipe the tears from her cheeks and put on a happy face for her.

"I am, Little Bits. Were you good for Mama?" Callie swallowed the immeasurable grief currently destroying her from the inside out because that's what moms did. They put their children first and Sofia didn't need more stress in her life.

"Uhuh. Where'd Mama go?"

"She went home to visit with your grandma and grandpa for a little while. She'll be back soon." That was the only home Callie could think of and it was just another nail in her coffin in the Colonel's eyes. He couldn't get past Callie bailing and lying about Sofia and although he supported his daughter's choices, he made it clear that Callie would forever remain an outsider in his circle of family. She didn't blame the man; parents protected their children but now there would be no chance in ever rectifying herself in his eyes.

"It's Teacher At Prison Day and Mama was going to take me to the aquarium. She promised." Sofia didn't care so much that her moms were playing a rather adult game of hide and go seek, but she did care that her mama was going to break a promise to her and Arizona didn't do those things. Arizona didn't make promises she wasn't going to keep—to Sofia.

"Teacher Appreciation Day, baby." Callie laughed at her daughter. Teachers probably felt like they were in prison most days. "Would it be okay if I took you to the aquarium?"

"Do you know stuff 'bout sharks?" Sofia was mulling over the idea; Mama always knew more information than the signs said and Sofia liked being extra smarter than the other kids.

"I know lots about sharks and jellyfish, too. Before I became a doctor, I was going to be a marine biologist."

"What's that?"

"A fish doctor. I wanted to take care of sick sharks and dolphins in the ocean and protect all the Nemos of the world." Callie knew at the mention of Nemo, she'd won her daughter over.

"Can I wear my fish socks?" Sofia's smile was so big, Callie forgot for a moment how her heart was in a million pieces.

"On a Friday? Are you sure?" She didn't mean to question her daughter, but Sofia didn't ever veer off schedule and Friday's socks were her daisy socks. It was a milestone Callie wished her partner was there to see, but even with the lack of Arizona, she relished in the moment.

"Uhuh!" Sofia nodded her head vigorously in agreement. "Mommy, I love you."

Callie never ever doubted Sofia's unconditional love, but she knew her daughter was saying it because of the dried tear stains on her cheeks. She was a brilliant child and if she could, she'd do anything to make her moms stop hurting. She didn't understand why they were hurting, but she knew telling them that she loved them always made their eyes sparkle with joy. "I love you, too, Sofia. So much." Callie crossed the room to gather her daughter in her arms.

"Can we have donuts for breakfast?" Sofia's voice was muffled by Callie's chest.

"We don't have any donuts, but I can make you pancakes, if you want. With blueberry syrup."

"Mama has donuts under the bed." Sofia pulled back from Callie, slapping her hand over her mouth as giggles poured out. "Oops."

"Oh, she does, does she?" Callie stood up and crossed her arms over her chest; for a split second, she was furious before it occurred to her that maybe Bailey was right; she was being absolutely ridiculous about things. "We'll just leave Mama her special donuts and go out for breakfast before we drive over to Baltimore. How does that sound? It can be our own little secret."

"Like Mama's cookies secret?"

"Cookies? I thought you said they were donuts." Callie raised an eyebrow, teasing her daughter. She'd already figured out that if there were donuts, there were probably other sweets, too.

"Oops." Sofia giggled again. She couldn't keep a secret to save her life and both moms knew it.

"It's still early, but if you want to get dressed, we can go over to Bread & Chocolate for breakfast. Maybe stuffing your face might save Mama from being in even more trouble when she gets home."

"Is she going to have to go to bed early?" Sofia's question was serious; she didn't mean to make Mama have to go to bed early.

"No, but she did promise to watch two Disney movies with you when she got back. Two complete Disney movies." Callie grinned; Arizona hated Disney movies even if she could sing the soundtracks to every single one of them in her sleep. That was a much better punishment than anything Callie could ever do to her. Even withholding sex wasn't as bad.

"Go get changed. I'm going to grab a shower." Callie leaned down and kissed the top of her daughter's head before swatting her backside back into her bedroom. Sofia was squealing with joy at the idea of two Disney movies back to back and even Callie was looking forward to Arizona's return just for that reason.

* * *

><p>Shaking off the fatigue of her impromptu travel along with the rain from the storm in which she landed, Arizona took in her comforting surroundings. Even if it wasn't where she grew up or where her parents had settled down, this would forever be home. She found comfort in the gray skies and never-changing landscape that DC would never have. DC was comfortable enough, but traffic was hell, the weather was always changing, and there was always some construction project going on that closed some section of the city down on any given day.<p>

"Thank you for picking me up." She collapsed onto the couch in exhaustion.

"No problem. At least I had more notice than Callie just showing up on my doorstep, even if it was a phone call six hours before you flew in." Mark joined her on the couch. He was going to wait her out until she could explain what abruptly brought her across the country without their daughter or her girlfriend and into his arms. Arizona would only be here if she needed him.

"Callie was here? When?" Arizona sat straight up at Mark's words. Callie came to Seattle? When? Why? What was going on?

"She didn't tell you?" He sighed loudly. Quickly doing the math in his head, he figured that Callie had only been home a matter of hours before Arizona took off for Seattle herself and with everything Callie was taking home with her, that wasn't anywhere near enough time to talk.

"No, I didn't talk to her or really listen to her or give her a chance anyway. I just left." Arizona sighed now. Callie had tried to tell her and if she had come to Seattle, there was something to tell.  
>Mark put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her back until she was curled against him. "Why'd you leave?"<p>

"Why was Callie here?" Arizona knew this was going to be a battle of the wills and nobody would come out on top. Until Mark told her why Callie was here, Arizona wasn't telling Mark that she was leaving her girlfriend.

"I can't tell you that, Arizona." It wasn't his business to do that to Callie. It was going to be hard enough for her to tell Arizona the truth. He had no right breaking her confidence and telling the blonde himself.

"Can we just sit here for a while?" Arizona curled further into the body attached to the arm around her shoulders. Before he could answer, he felt the hot tears soaking through his thin t-shirt.

Wrapping his arms tighter around her small frame, he held on tight as the strong and usually stoic Arizona Robbins sobbed her heart out in his arms.


	7. Chapter 7

_Disclaimer: _Not mine. Never were, never will be. If they were, Owen would fall on a spear and then tumble down the stairs and then get hit by a bus that explodes in a painful and fiery death. The end. Vultures would be involved as well and maybe snakes too. It's hard hating Owen today when I saw a commercial the actor was in where he was pushing people to get up and volunteer. You should volunteer because it's awesome. And you're doing good; you want to do good, right? You should otherwise maybe you should be eaten by snakes. __

_A/N: So two weeks is unacceptable, I know but I do have a valid excuse. After a brief hospital stay, a friend going through a personal crisis, and being unbelievably swamped at work, I haven't had the heart to get online with my very few minutes of free time. I am sorry for the very long delay. I have chapters in my queue so if this happens again, I'm having my wonderful beta post for me. If it weren't for her tonight, I wouldn't even have remembered to post so thank her. Again, I'm sorry life got out of control. Will it ever slow down? Here's the next installment in the I Can See You Talking series. I hope you enjoyed the last story and although this one is a bumpy ride, that you'll stick around until the end._

_ps- I'll reply to my last chapter's PMs and reviews as soon as possible but not tonight. I wanted to get this up and felt you'd appreciate that more._

_Beta'd by Sara_

* * *

><p>Teddy and Alex were both in surgery and that left Arizona to roam the halls of the hospital she once saw more than the inside of her own apartment. It felt good to be there without running around like a chicken with its head cut off. She missed this place but she liked Children's. She liked that every case that came in was a specialty case where she had a chance to give a family a future again. She knew what it was like to have a second chance and she wanted that for everybody else as well. It wasn't just broken bones and bad flus, but Arizona was changing lives. She probably loved her current hospital more than Seattle Grace even if she'd left the best part of her life here.<p>

"Both of you come back to Seattle and neither of you brings that beautiful little girl with you?" Bailey shook her head, bringing Arizona out of her daze.

"This wasn't exactly a planned trip." Arizona smiled at her old friend knowing very well that hugging was off the table.

Bailey sighed before opening the door to an on-call room. "Does she even know you're here?" She motioned for Arizona to follow her inside.

"No." She took the furthest corner of the bed knowing she was in for a lecture.

"After all these years you'd think you two would learn how dangerous it is to keep secrets from each other." She started pacing; she'd just sent Callie home to this woman, but here she was running away just like they always did.

"I needed to clear my head. I'm just—I'm so mad at her." Arizona pinched the bridge of her nose as another headache started just like every time she thought about Callie.

"Why are you telling me this? Tell her you're mad. Do I look like Callie Torres? No, I'm Miranda Bailey. Telling me this is useless, but telling her might make all the difference in your world." Bailey stopped pacing to sit with Arizona on the bed. She looked as if she was going to start sobbing and that wasn't her intention. Making Arizona see her mistakes, yes, but not making her cry.

"She doesn't want a family with me." Arizona did exactly what Bailey didn't want; she started crying. Not sobbing, but the tears were still falling down her face as she hugged tight to her knees.

"You already have a family together." Bailey patted her knee; she didn't understand why both women pretended to be so strong. Being strong didn't make you a better person; letting yourself be weak made you a better person because it took more strength to let someone else in than it did to build walls.

"I doubt that anymore." Arizona used the sleeve of her shirt to wipe at her eyes; she hated crying.

"Then you are as dumb as you are beautiful, Arizona Robbins." Bailey shook her head; Callie was doing everything she could think to save her family; Arizona had it so wrong.

"She doesn't want more kids. I don't even think she wants me. Maybe this is my fault; maybe I shouldn't have waited so long to propose to her." Her insecurities were getting the better of her; she just couldn't shake the feeling that she was disposable to Callie. She had been once before and that almost killed her; this time she thought it might actually finish her off.

"You proposed?" Bailey's voice was skeptical; Callie hadn't mentioned that.

"No, I waited too long. We hadn't talked about things like that; we never have time and I wanted it to be perfect. I didn't want it in between crying fits from our daughter and running out to work or something else. I wanted her to really believe I wanted a future with her. I've turned into Callie; we haven't even talked about marriage and here I am wanting more children." Arizona sighed; she wasn't sure exactly when she had turned into that person, but she had. She was the one pushing for baby carriages before I do and wasn't that what caused their first break up all those years ago? Callie pushed before they were ready; before the proper societal steps had been taken to assure commitment and forever.

"Maybe you did go in the wrong order, but seriously, when have you two ever done anything in order? You already have one child together and there wasn't a ring or even a mention of one in the past. Marriage doesn't mean forever; look at my family. We live on separate sides of the country and Tuck flies out for visits with me on holidays and summer breaks. You don't need a marriage to have a family; you have a family."

"She doesn't want to have a baby; she doesn't want more children with me. It's me. I'm the common denominator here; she doesn't want me."

Bailey shook her head; she couldn't fathom how such brilliant women could be so thick. "I think you're wrong."

"I'm not," Arizona shouted at the woman trying to calm her down. Misdirected or not, she was still angry and Miranda Bailey wouldn't hate her when she was done.

"If that was true, she wouldn't have flown across the country to be tormented and ridiculed by people she once called her friends and family—for you."

"For me? Why was she here, Miranda?" Mark wouldn't tell her, but she wasn't going to push him either even if she did want his loyalties to lie with her. But Bailey would because for a woman that didn't meddle in the private lives of her friends and coworkers; she refused to let two people ruin their lives if she could do something to help it.

"You want babies. Callie was here to figure out if she could give them to you."

"What?" Arizona shot up, grabbing the other woman by the shoulders. "Is she sick and didn't tell me? Why can't she give me babies? What's wrong with her?" Her headache was gone, but she suddenly felt sick to her stomach; she wanted to throw up.

"I'll tell you what I told her. Nothing is wrong with her. She's a perfectly healthy woman. When things didn't go as planned, it was nothing she did wrong. It's just life and you two can get through it as a family. She didn't screw anyone up and none of this is her fault."

"What's not her fault?" Arizona was so confused.

"While you've been off playing Super Mom with your support groups and wonderful advocacy campaigns, have you even noticed Callie Torres in your busy schedule?"

"We're both busy," she snapped; she didn't like it being pointed out that Callie had fallen through the cracks lately. It was unintentional, but it still happened.

"You two are the most hard headed women I've ever met." Miranda sighed. "Sofia, your daughter, the one you both live for and would die for? Callie blames herself for what's going on with your daughter and she's been waiting for you to blame her, too." It really made perfect sense to a stranger looking from the outside in, but she could see how easy it was to miss just the same.

Arizona's face fell, not that it had far to drop. "Why didn't I see that?" She felt like hitting her head against a wall. It was right there in front of her every day, it was right before her eyes, but she didn't see it. It made sense why Callie's dreams of a family had changed, but she was being too selfish and too self-centered to see it.

"Because you're doing what you do best, Arizona." Miranda softened her voice; she wasn't being accusatory because it wasn't just a fault of Arizona Robbins; it's what made her—her. "You went from being Awesome Dr. Robbins to Awesome Super Mom, but just like before, you get so wrapped up in things and Callie, who shuts down, got lost in the mix. Nine years later and you two haven't learned anything about each other."

"What were her results? What am I going to find when I go home?" She needed to be prepared to be what Callie needed her to be; she just wasn't Super Mom, but she was also Calliope Torres' partner and it was about time she filled that role to the best of her abilities, too.

"Your family. You're going home to your family. She didn't want the results; she just wanted you. _You_and Sofia and whatever your future held together." Bailey could see how it was both their faults, what got them here, but she hoped that her unsolicited two cents would be enough to buy them the future they deserved.

Arizona sighed, pulling her knees into her chest once again. "I'm such an idiot."

"Yes, you both are." Bailey laughed when Arizona scoffed at her. "Go home to your wife."

"She's not my wife; I don't even know if she'll be my girlfriend when I get back." Arizona wiped the stray tears onto her knees. She wanted to smack them both for being such morons, but more than that, she wanted to hold her girlfriend tightly and let her know everything was going to be okay.

"Start with I'm sorry." Bailey smiled. "I'll see you at your wedding; now get out of my hospital."

* * *

><p>"Why do you always make me take a nap?" Sofia lay on her mama's side of the bed doing everything possible to avoid the inevitability of sleep while her mommy was merely seconds away from an exhaustion coma. After the previous day spent at the National Aquarium and all her traveling sans sleeping lately, Callie was a walking zombie. It had been a lazy Saturday but once afternoon hit, she was more in need of sleep than oxygen to breathe.<p>

"Because I'm the mommy, that's why," Callie groaned as her daughter rolled toward her and started poking. "Sofia Robbin, let Mommy sleep."

"I don't like that answer," she whined. If it wasn't because I'm the mom, that's why, it was because I'm the adult, that's why. It was always because Sofia wasn't big enough and she was big enough. She could ride her bicycle without training wheels now because Mama said she was a big girl.

"Do you like being a mommy?" Callie caught the confusion in her daughter's voice and rolled over to face her.

"I love being a mommy. I love being _your _mommy." It was true; Sofia wasn't an easy child by any means, but she was Callie's daughter and she cherished every second they had together.

"Do you not want another baby 'cause I make you so sad?" And here was where Callie wished her daughter wasn't so smart; she wished Sofia was oblivious to adult matters and could enjoy life as a child deserved.

"You don't make me sad, Sofia. You make me so happy." It wasn't Sofia who made her sad; it was the life her daughter was forced to live that destroyed Callie.

"I make you cry and you and Mama fight."

Callie's voice caught in her throat; she didn't know how to explain to their daughter that it wasn't her fault. Arizona was good at these things; she could easily talk Sofia out of a rather uncomfortable conversation and get her mind occupied with other thoughts. When Sofia asked them, in the middle of a movie theater in her five year old stage whisper, what penises were for, Arizona easily changed the subject to crayon colors. To this day, Callie still wasn't sure exactly how Arizona did it.

"It's not you, baby."

"I don't mean to." Sofia's lip stuck out like it always did before the waterworks began. You could always tell when she was fake crying as opposed to real tears based on that lip. Crocodile tears never brought out that lip.

Callie sat up and shifted until her daughter sat across from her. "It's not your fault, Sofia; you did _nothing_wrong."

"Maybe a new baby won't make you sad." If it wasn't her fault, she didn't understand why when she cried, her mommy got so sad. It had to be her fault.

"Sofia—" There wasn't an easy answer here.

"If I wasn't sick, would you have another baby?" She knew her mama wanted another baby and she knew Mommy didn't, but she didn't know why and being only seven, she let her imagination run away with her.

"_You are not sick_!" She didn't mean yell and make her daughter jump, but she wasn't going to let Sofia think she was anything other than perfect. They had to put up with the judgment and ridicule out in society, but in her own home, this was not acceptable. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell, but you are _not_sick, baby." Callie lowered her voice as more tears fell from her daughter's eyes.

"Are you scared they'll be like me?" Sofia knew she wasn't normal by society's standards; her friends didn't have problems like she did and though her moms never made her feel anything less than normal, she knew she wasn't like everybody else except some of the kids at the meetings they attended.

"Your life isn't going to be easy, Sof, and that's mommy's fault. That's my fault." Callie hated that her daughter felt like an outcast.

"You and Mama make it better."

"I can't make it better," Callie whispered. She tried so hard to change things, but Sofia's life was always going to be a rollercoaster and Callie would always at least try to buckle her safely in before the deepest drops.

"Did I get this from you?"

"I don't know." Callie would always blame herself for her daughter's less than easy life regardless of what the results of those tests had come to show. She realized that no matter the answers she had, they wouldn't make a difference.

"Does that mean I can't have babies 'cause they might be like me?" Callie wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. Of course her daughter would already think about having children when she was still a child herself. Callie always dreamed of motherhood, marriage, and a big family too.

"No, Sofia. Just because you have it doesn't mean they will, too." She wasn't taking away her daughter's dreams even if her own were smashed on the side of the road somewhere between the wedding she'd never have and the sleepless nights new babies brought with them.

Sofia started sobbing hysterically. "I want babies, Mommy."

"Oh, baby, have them. Grow up, get married, and have babies. Have tons of babies." Callie grabbed her daughter and pulled her into her lap, rocking them both.

"But if you're scared, I'm scared."

Callie could say nothing as more guilt ate away at her. Their seven year old child could figure out why there was a baby issue in their house, but Arizona couldn't. Granted, she didn't talk to Arizona so not all the blame was on her girlfriend, but it still burned as much as it broke her heart. Sofia was supposed to be ignorant to these things and she'd done a very poor job at protecting her.

"Mrs. Tyler said it comes from mommies and daddies jeans." The school counselor was a brilliant woman and a blessing to their family. Often times, when breakdowns occurred at school, she could reverse the damage and send Sofia back to class to make it through the day. "You buy me my jeans, Mommy."

"Not the jeans you wear, but genes, baby. G-E-N-E-S. It's what makes up your body. You have Mommy's genes and Uncle Mark's genes inside of you. Your baby will have yours and whoever you make babies with." Sofia had learned only months before that Uncle Mark was her dad. She came home one day from school and informed both Callie and Arizona that two girls couldn't make babies and she wanted to know who her dad was. They explained that not every family had a daddy or a mommy because some families were just like their own with two mommies or two daddies and that's where doctors helped them make babies, but that she did have a dad. A dad who loved her so very much that he didn't want to confuse her by showing up in her life and demanding his place when she already had two amazing parents who loved her very much. He took a step back and let her mommies be a family, but that didn't mean he loved her any less. It meant he loved her so very much to do that. Sofia accepted their answer and the three parents decided it was the only answer they were ever going to give her. They all made mistakes and Sofia didn't need to be aware of her uncle and mama's actions before she was born or that her mommy took off with her and lied for years. Their mistakes were never going to hurt their daughter; they'd done enough damage to each other.

"That means if they have me in them, they could have autism, too?" Although Sofia understood the basics of autism, she didn't grasp the whole concept. She understood that life wasn't always easy, but that was about all she got at this point in time.

"Maybe," Callie wasn't going to lie because she didn't know, "but we don't know."

"If you and Mama had a baby, if it was normal, would you love it more?" Only children wished for siblings and children with siblings wished to be only children; Callie wouldn't win this part of the fight no matter how hard she tried.

"Sofia, you're not—not normal." One downfall to mainstreaming their daughter was this exact problem; children would always point out the obvious about other children, but they wanted Sofia to be an active part of society and not have to or want to hide because she wasn't a cookie cut-out human being.

"I am." Sofia had Callie's stubborn streak and wasn't going to let her mommy win this part of their argument; she didn't mind not being _normal_but she did mind that it bothered her mommies. "So would you?"

"No, baby, we'd love you both equally." Callie sighed; that's all that mattered anyway, that Sofia knew how much she was loved.

"If they were like me, would you still love them eqwooly?"

"Yes, baby; we'd love you both so so so very much."

"Mama wants more babies." Arizona hadn't spoken to her about children, but she wasn't stupid. Late at night, she could hear them arguing softly when they thought she was sound asleep.

"I know."

"I want a brother." Sofia pulled out of her mommy's arms and wiped her face on her sleeve. She thought about all her friends and she wanted a brother like Tommy. He was her best friend. Girls weren't as fun as he was. "You should have me a brother."

Callie laughed at the serious tone of her daughter's voice; her mind was made up. "You think?"

"You're a good mommy. I love you. The baby will love you, too." It was as easy as that for Sofia; her mommy was her hero and she couldn't imagine any other kids thinking any different.

"I love you, baby." Callie wiped her own wet eyes, still laughing at her daughter. She could imagine three kids just like Sofia and she wanted that, but it didn't change the fact that she was still so afraid.

"Don't be scared. You and Mama can do nething together**. **She told me that."

She'd been standing just outside the bedroom door listening to the whole conversation from Sofia's attempt to avoid a nap on. It broke her heart that Sofia felt less than everybody else did, but it warmed her heart that Callie could put her own insecurities aside to make their daughter feel nothing less than loved. It was time she did the same for her family.

"We can because we love each other so much."

Callie wasn't expecting the interruption and her heart was once again in her throat. "You're home?" She was right there, in front of Callie's eyes, but she couldn't believe it. When Arizona walked out, she'd expected nothing more than a Dear Jane e-mail that gave her details of when she'd be moving her stuff from their apartment.

"I'm _home_!" Arizona smiled at the two most important people in her life. She was home. "Sofia?"

Their daughter groaned, "Go play in my room. I know." She hopped off the bed after giving her mommy a kiss. "I love you." She hugged Arizona before making her way out, leaving the two women alone.

"We love you," Callie yelled after her; she couldn't help but laugh when Sofia popped her head back in.

"You should do it. Make me a brother. It'll be okay." She squealed when her mama swatted her behind, sending her off again.

"Hi." Callie's voice was raw from crying, as Arizona stood motionless in the doorway, watching Callie bring her knees up to her chest, hugging them in a protective posture. She had no more walls to shield herself; Sofia brought them crumbling down and here Arizona was with the ability to destroy the heart that had been hiding behind them.


End file.
